The thing that got me, and he did it consistently over the last month was when he would pull Vogelbach for a righty in the 5th or 6th inning and end up with Ruf or Vientos facing a tough righty closer later in the game. That said I thought he did a really good job.
I probably would have gone with the Phils' manager, because they were dead in the water, Harper was out for a while and even when he came back he couldn't play the field.
Buck did everything he needed to do and more. He created a great environment and made sure the hitters did what they needed to do to work the pitchers. All else is kismet.
The thing that got me, and he did it consistently over the last month was when he would pull Vogelbach for a righty in the 5th or 6th inning and end up with Ruf or Vientos facing a tough righty closer later in the game. That said I thought he did a really good job.
I probably would have gone with the Phils' manager, because they were dead in the water, Harper was out for a while and even when he came back he couldn't play the field.
I think he didn't have much of a choice. The real issue was that Vogelbach could get on base but just basically clogged them up if he did. Ruf was awful and Vientos was meh. When those are the three guys to have to go to, there's not much there there.
So if you want to blame anyone, blame Eppler. But as far as I am concerned, it was a tremendously fun season and Buck was an A+.
It was a great season for sure, but if none of the issues were his responsibility why is there a manager of the year award? And the award doesn't exist in a vacuum. Buck is very, very good but that guy from the Phillies squeezed more out of that roster than ever should have been possible. It's like winning 101 games and still finishing second. 101 is great, 102 is better.
And I'll admit I was wrong, wrong, wrong about Buck. I thought he was too old school, and not the right guy for the job. He was neither of those things.
It was a great season for sure, but if none of the issues were his responsibility why is there a manager of the year award? And the award doesn't exist in a vacuum. Buck is very, very good but that guy from the Phillies squeezed more out of that roster than ever should have been possible. It's like winning 101 games and still finishing second. 101 is great, 102 is better.
it wasn't that those games weren't his responsibility. It's just that over 162 games every team is going to have some clunkers. The Mets' problem that makes their season seem more disappointing is that 7-8 of those clunkers came in Sept and Oct. To me the 101 wins with a team that had to navigate through a lot of injuries to the pitchers, and some shaky relievers indicates a good job by the manager.
ok, so now that we're all in agreement that Manager of the Year is meaningless, who do you want them to sign first? I find it amusing that they're claiming there is collusion between Cohen and Steinbrenner with regards to Judge. And I hope Cohen didn't get mixed up investing in crypto.
I hope Dom finds himself a good home. He's a great guy who can help a team.
Rays and Royals apparently taking a long look at him. He is a better fit for the Rays, who traded their first baseman earlier. He is a good guy from what I can see, but his torn shoulder labrum may have ended his power stroke (as happened with Cody Bellinger).
It's sounding like Nimmo is going to get a nice contract. Good for him. I'm not sure if I would break the bank for him. I certainly wouldn't if I were the Blue Jays and had a turf field for him to play on half the year.
I wonder what the Mets can do in CF if Nimmo leaves. Moving Marte would be a big mistake. Keep him healthy and hitting in RF.
I guess it depends on who they sign. I think Trea Turner could play center. I thought Canha played center pretty well. Are there any centerfielders in the minors they're considering, i.e. Mangum?
Jacob deGrom is a top 5 all-time favorite Met of mine. Watching him operate on the mound at his peak was like watching an artist. My focus is entirely on the positive and the privilege it has been to see him play, especially in blue and orange.
I guess he loved the idea of playing in Texas. I can't believe the Mets wouldn't have matched the $$.
the Texas tax rates make a difference as well. A matching offer here would have been $40 million for 5 years at least. It could very well be that the Mets chose not to match the years. I hope he can stay on the field, I like him, but I'm not sure that he can.
As all are saying, I wish deGrom the best, although I do wonder if he just got tired of New York. We will hear more about how it went down.
Not sure pitching in Texas is the best place for an aging pitcher with a history of recent injuries. Sure, Nolan Ryan did great there as a free agent signing. But the ball travels in the humidity, and the heat takes a toll on pitchers. I wonder how deGrom will fare, especially in the later years of the contract.
Will he be Nolan Ryan? Or Kevin Millweood or Park? We shall see.
As all are saying, I wish deGrom the best, although I do wonder if he just got tired of New York. We will hear more about how it went down.
Not sure pitching in Texas is the best place for an aging pitcher with a history of recent injuries. Sure, Nolan Ryan did great there as a free agent signing. But the ball travels in the humidity, and the heat takes a toll on pitchers. I wonder how deGrom will fare, especially in the later years of the contract.
Will he be Nolan Ryan? Or Kevin Millweood or Park? We shall see.
Random thoughts about deGrom: GREAT Met. Bittersweet. Sorry to see him go. Didn't want to overpay. He's become more fragile each season. The band-aid has been pulled off. Let's move on.
Jacob deGrom is an amazing pitcher. One of the best many of us will ever see. He got so little run support in some brilliantly pitched games. He should have far more than 82 lifetime wins.
I do agree with Soul_29. How much time did we all spend the last few years waiting for him to return to the mound? He seems to be getting more injury prone, although some people might say his arm has a lot fewer pitches on it than your average 34-year-old starter.
I hope it’s the latter. I’m sorry he’s gone and I hope he has seen the last of his major injuries and there’s another 5-7 years left in that arm. I hope the Rangers score six runs every game he starts and he wins 20 games at least one season. Maybe even gets a WS ring. We owe a lot of amazin’ memories to the man and he deserves every bit of success.
Yes he gave us and baseball a lot of great memories. That does not translate into regret for not signing him. His age and multi-injury history does not justify that deal. And he did not exactly put on a PR show about wanting to stay here.
I wouldn't consider it the same as Seaver. He didn't want to be here. He made it pretty clear. One of my favorites. Good for him. I wish him well. Texas doesn't seem like an ideal landing spot if you're looking to compete for a World Series. Even with him their rotation is worse than the Mets, and the Mets have only 3 starters at the moment.
I echo all of the sentiments above. We all got to see greatness, even if in small stretches at times.
The most curious thing in my mind is the destination. I just don’t see Texas competing for a championship in the next five years, and for a guy as competitive as deGrom, that would seem to matter.
In the end it has to be about the total contract value, and I think maybe he was a bit slighted when they brought the new alpha dog onto the team last winter. Last part is just a theory, but a plausible one, I think.
I echo all of the sentiments above. We all got to see greatness, even if in small stretches at times.
The most curious thing in my mind is the destination. I just don’t see Texas competing for a championship in the next five years, and for a guy as competitive as deGrom, that would seem to matter.
In the end it has to be about the total contract value, and I think maybe he was a bit slighted when they brought the new alpha dog onto the team last winter. Last part is just a theory, but a plausible one, I think.
Yes, the destination seems like a bit of a head scratcher. He went from a place where baseball is the clear number one sport to a market where baseball is a distant third in interest behind NFL and college football. As a Mets fan it's obviously disappointing, but as a baseball fan it's also kind of disappointing that he ended up in what I'd consider the siberia of MLB. If he went to LA, Boston, Chicago, St. Louis or even Minnesota it would be more exciting to me as a baseball fan than Texas.
Yes, the destination seems like a bit of a head scratcher. He went from a place where baseball is the clear number one sport to a market where baseball is a distant third in interest behind NFL and college football. As a Mets fan it's obviously disappointing, but as a baseball fan it's also kind of disappointing that he ended up in what I'd consider the siberia of MLB. If he went to LA, Boston, Chicago, St. Louis or even Minnesota it would be more exciting to me as a baseball fan than Texas.
I would have even understood Atlanta. I wouldn't have been happy about it, but still. I do think there is something to the theory of Scherzer and him being 1 and 1A. He didn't seem too happy all of last year.
Bassitt is seeking 4 years, so likely will not be a Mets pitcher. The team seems willing to pay a lot for short-term deals, but will not go long on arms. Reports are that was the big reason deGrom went to Texas without asking for a counter from the Mets--the Mets had made it clear they would not do 5 years.
Walker may still be a fit, as might Taillon, although he has had TJ surgery twice.
Bassitt is seeking 4 years, so likely will not be a Mets pitcher. The team seems willing to pay a lot for short-term deals, but will not go long on arms. Reports are that was the big reason deGrom went to Texas without asking for a counter from the Mets--the Mets had made it clear they would not do 5 years.
Walker may still be a fit, as might Taillon, although he has had TJ surgery twice.
Maybe they can work out a 3 year deal with Bassitt with an option for 4 with some sort of buyout if the Mets decline. They could use him or Walker to give them innings like they did last season. Right now a top three of Scherzer, Verlander and Carrasco looks good (but old). If they can get 75 starts out of the top three and they pitch like they did in '22, that will be a very good foundation. I'm also expecting more starts out of Peterson and Megill next season.
The thing that got me, and he did it consistently over the last month was when he would pull Vogelbach for a righty in the 5th or 6th inning and end up with Ruf or Vientos facing a tough righty closer later in the game. That said I thought he did a really good job.
I probably would have gone with the Phils' manager, because they were dead in the water, Harper was out for a while and even when he came back he couldn't play the field.